Lining the entryway to Tomorrowland is the all-new Starlight Bazaar! Fitting with Tomorrowland’s new backstory as a once highly industrial spaceport now turning to tourism as the primary industry, this is where all of the less affluent but still ambitious shopkeepers of Tomorrowland come to scam, er, sell stuff to unsuspecting tourists! Inspired by the bazaars and outdoor markets of the cities of Earth, Starlight Bazaar consists of a series of kiosks and stands placed on the main boulevard. A new, tinted glass, cyberpunk roof protects this area from sunlight, and at night, LED lights embedded in the glass twinkle - the stars that give the Bazaar its name! The PeopleMover darts by on the second story of the street, still covered by the roof, and its glass nature allows guests views of the Astro Orbiter.
There are seven stands in total. Three are dedicated to shopping, two are for snacking, and two are purely for show!
Out of all of the delicacies of the galaxy, none are as tasty as the roasted Gerkle! These small, scaly creatures are not cute, and make an annoying “yip” sound from their antennae. However, when roasted and served in a bun with space sauce and fresh vegetables, they’re delicious!
This snack stand is darkly humorous, like its next door neighbor that we’ll see in a moment. A Seussical conveyer belt contraption funnels from a crate of noisy animatronic Gerkles. We can’t see the Gerkles being shunted along, but their shadows are visibly projected on the side of the tube and the sound of their yipping travels with the projections, creating a convincing illusion. This tube leads to a glowing metal box. A small window on the side of it displays a glowing orange interior, where physical Gerkles are moved in with an infinite conveyer belt effect. One at a time, they reach the center of the box, with their annoying yipping sound reaching a climax. Suddenly, there is a puff of heat and smoke (which ventilates out of the top of this oven), and the Gerkle is instantly roasted into a charbroiled lump (the conveyer belt quickly switches to the lump, with the pattern on the belt alternating between the two)! This is moved off and replaced by another Gerkle, and the illusion repeats.
This stand sells a few food options, the most prominent being the Gerkle Gyro. Actually a sausage sandwich, this is similar in concept and execution to the Ronto Wrap. The Gerkle Gyro differentiates itself with small, edible antennae served stuck into the sausage, although the sandwich is available without it on request. Other options include a vegetarian Gerkle Gyro, subtitled “Now With 100% Less Gerkle!”, Gerkle-Fried Gerkle Bites, sausage bites covered with dough and deep fried (each bite has its own pair of antennae), and the usual assortment of drinks. A small dumbwaiter dug into the Utilidor allows this sure-to-be-popular stand to restock throughout the day.
This stand is X-S Tech’s (the evil company behind Alien Encounter) products showroom of Tomorrow! A bit of a parody of the Carousel of Progress and Innoventions, an animatronic robot tries his best to sell guests everything they never knew they needed, and more! Perched on a raised platform surrounded by gadgets and gizmos, this humanoid huckster gives the pitch of a lifetime for technology that’s either monkey’s paw evil or simply excessive. But if it can’t be done with X-S, should it really be done at all? Almost every product pitched is visible on the platform and can come to life in some way. Some of the merchandise he hawks includes:
A robot car! This thing will drive you everywhere, and you don’t even need to lift a finger! Absolutely reliable! (The dented prop car revs its engine. Eagle-eyed guests can see tire marks leading to the car, careening off of a damaged wall)
A spacesuit! To keep you oxygen-breathers safe throughout the galaxy! Will never pop! (The spacesuit itself slowly deflates, into a crumpled heap)
A pet robot! This thing is man’s best friend! Guaranteed to never turn evil! (The robot turns evil. Our host has to shut it down to get its eyes to stop glowing red)
A miniature teleporter! (This gag is reused from the preshow of Alien Encounter, although not quite as violently. The shrieking from this effect and the yipping from next door Gerkle Gyros creates quite the cacophony! These two stands are tucked away as much as possible to avoid traumatizing children
An alien detector! Will go off if an alien so much as breathes near it! (The detector starts to beep for no reason, and our host must shut it down, grumbling about the faulty product. A tiny alien pops its head out from behind the detector, giggling mischievously, but unseen by our host)
Nothing is sold here, as this stand is purely for show. To avoid any confusion, the host makes it clear that each product can be all yours for millions of Murgazoidian Quirkles, more of that currency than any Earthling present should carry!
This stand consists of small, futuristic cages stacked on top of each other, surrounding a central register area. Here, can take home their very own alien friend! Most of the cages are open, and filled with plushies with every color, size, and attribute imaginable. These are available for guests to purchase and take home, ranging from giant plush that can be shipped almost anywhere to shoulder pets to wear around the park. Other cages are closed and locked, with animatronic aliens inside. Some are cute, but one or two aggressively attempt to break out of their prisons, which shake and rattle.
This ramshackle show kisok appears to have been cobbled together from bits and pieces of scrap metal. A large “BACK IN FIVE MINUTES” sign hangs from its small roof. Altogether, this is an unremarkable little shop… except for the heads!
Robot heads cover every available surface on this kiosk! These heads range from standard sci-fi craniums, to Disney Easter eggs, including the head of the Timekeeper, unadorned animatronic skulls, C-3PO’s helmet, and SMRT-1. Several are puppeteered, live, by cast members hidden offstage, and will insult and interact with unsuspecting passerby. Signs pay tribute to the Jungle Cruise’s Trader Sam, whose descendent is evidently in a very similar line of work (Two heads for one of yours!). The effect is memorable and sure to be a highlight of guest’s days (this also fills the interactivity gap left by Monster’s Inc Laugh Floor!).
This stand is the domain of a local scrapper, who has evidently pillaged the local spacecraft. Wings create walls, a hollowed out fuselage forms a merchandise rack, and cash registers are perched on a ship’s mainframe computer. The entire effect is a bit illicit! This shop is a favorite haunt of Officer Sputnik (see Streetmosphere), who loves to come by and accept bribes/gifts from the shopkeepers. Actual merchandise is pins, sunglasses, and keychains - anything metal or plastic!
This is the most boring stand in the bazaar, really a standard snack cart with some mild theming delineating it as a snack stand owned by the port. Standard Mickey Premium Bars and popcorn can be bought here. But hey, sometimes that’s all that is necessary; a place to get a quick treat!
This is one of the places where the Space Force, protectors of the cosmos, get their uniforms! On display are uniforms of several Space Force ranks, from Private all the way to General. Some of the uniforms would fit a human, but others have multiple armholes or neckholes, and some, including the General’s, are simply designed to fit blob creatures with no appendages! Actual apparel can be purchased here, including Tomorrowland baseball hats and t-shirts. A new line of Galactic Space Force merchandise debuts as well, for children particularly influenced by roaming Space Force members (see Streetmosphere).